Stove Top Potpourri Neighbor Gifts + Free Printable

Memories are so strongly linked to smells. One whiff of some whole cloves and orange peels, and I feel cheerful coziness wrap my heart up in Christmas memories. It’s the best!

This year, I figured…why not share this happy tradition with our neighbors?

Stovetop Potpourri in a jar…coming up! :)

I can’t figure out if I should put a space between stove and top…spell check says yes. I say no. So, you’ll see me waffle back and forth between those spellings because…meh. Doesn’t really matter. What matters is how magical your house is going to smell…or your neighbor’s house is going to smell after simmering a jar full of these pretties…

The file is hosted through Google Drive, but you should not have to have a Google account to access them. Be aware, that some servers will block downloads from Google docs. If you need me to email the files to you, contact me at delia.randall@gmail.com. The turn around time should be pretty quick, but to be safe, I caution you to allow up to 10 business days for me to get back to you.Please note that these printables are for personal use only and are not to be copied, redistributed, or hosted on another site other than mine without written permission. :)

Then cut the labels out to fit your jar. You can trace circles and cut them with scissors, or use a circle cutter if you have one large enough.

They fit a wide mouth lid perfectly if you leave about 3/8″ white space around the outer rim of the label. For narrow neck lids, consider cutting them a little smaller and tying them to the jar with string (I show examples in pictures further down in this post).

Now for the recipes. There are THREE!

First up….

Sweet, festive, and really inexpensive if you have a pine tree in your yard. ;) Or trim if from your Christmas tree.

You really can’t go thaaat wrong if you mess around with the recipe, so change it up and experiment if you like.

This recipe has a lot more ingredients, but it’s also super flexible. You can take out any part of the recipe and it will still smell great.

You can use powdered or grated nutmeg as well, if you can’t find it whole. If you don’t have an orange, use a lemon! It all works.

Make it all just spices even! Nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves…yum!

TIPS FOR BUYING SPICES:

I know that spices can get pretty expensive, especially when you are buying them fresh or whole.

– Check the bottom shelf for bulk containers of cinnamon sticks. I bought a large container of nice, fragrant cinnamon sticks at Walmart for $5.

– For whole star anise and whole nutmeg, I had to go to a health food store that sells spices by weight. Even then, it was only $1-2 for the amount of spices I needed (handful). If you can find a health food store, or whole foods type grocery store, it is likely they will have the spices you need for less than buying name brand bottles of it in a major chain.

– For fresh rosemary, buy the plant not the pre-cut bunch! They will most likely cost the same, but with the plant you can continually use it and trim sprigs from it. Rosemary winters well, so your local store may still be selling it in the produce section, or check your local nursery.

Cuties or clementines are the perfect orange for potpourri because the peels are very fragrant, and they are small enough to package up in a cute way.

To use the potpourri, simply put everything into a small pan, cover with water and simmer on low.

…and let the holiday memories seep in. :)

I kept the instructions simple on the label, so it would suit any kind of stove top potpourri. You could add words about peeling the citrus to the back of the label if you want, but it’s not really necessary. Whether they slice it or peel it…it will work great.

Those photos are gorgeous! Forget the neighbors… I want to make the last one for me!
When spell-check and I are having an argument about whether something is supposed to be one word or two I usually just add a dash… like top-stitching. Or stove-top. ;-)

Delia, this is a wonderful idea! I’m simmering a pot on my stove right now. ;) I’m also getting ingredients together to give to some of my friends and neighbors. I was wondering if you’d consider replacing the orange with orange extract? Just a few drops in the jar or on the cinnamon stick? Also, would powdered nutmeg be a bad idea? I can see it clumping or something, but I cannot find whole nutmeg for the life of me! I love the smell, though! Thanks for always having such affordable and fun ideas! I love reading your blog daily! Merry Christmas!

Good questions! You can totally add orange extract. I’m guessing that it will smell a little different but still good! Powdered nutmeg should work as well. The same goes for cinnamon and cloves. I would imagine all the spices would settle on the bottom anyway. It won’t be as pretty, but once it gets in the pot and starts simmering, it all looks the same anyway. You can also put them into a small vellum envelope if you want. Or maybe even a little sewn muslin bag? I hope that helps. Thank you for your thoughtful kind comment. I really appreciate it! Merry Christmas to you too Meg!

Hi Sarah! Yes. So you just let it warm on your stove in a small pan of water. You can also use a mini crock pot. Turn it on and off as needed (don’t let it stay on overnight if you are putting it on the stove). After a few days, the smell will start to dissipate and the ingredients will turn muddy. That’s when it’s time to discard it. I hope that helps! Let me know if you have any more questions.

So excited to give these as gifts this year! I can’t for the life of me find whole star anise though, about how much of anise seed do you think would be appropriate? I’ve never used it before and I don’t want to overdo it. Thoughts? Thanks!

Good question! Star anise is very potent. You really only need one or two per jar. If you can’t find it, cloves are fragrant enough on their own as well, so you don’t really *need* it. I hope that helps! :)

Good question. That really depends on the freshness of your cranberries. They could last up to a couple of weeks+ if you know that they are really fresh. You will want include how long they may hang onto it before they use it though…so maybe factor in an extra few days to a week for that.

Love this idea! Making them for Christmas this year :)
How far in advance would you suggest making them? I don’t want to cut my Rosemary too soon and then have them wilt…or the lemons go bad etc.
Great idea – thank you!!

Good question! Rosemary is generally pretty hardy and lemons last a while. That said, I personally wouldn’t wait more than a few days before gifting them, in case the recipient decides not to use it right away. Does that help?

Good question! I am not really sure because I have never tried it, but I don’t see why not. The smell might vary from fresh ingredients and it won’t look as pretty in the pan, but I think it would still smell festive and pleasantly fragrant.

Another good place for whole spices is the imported food supermarket. I went there for nutmeg to make my own stovetop potpourri recipe last month and there were bags of 5 of them for about $1.30. I bought two bags and cut them in half with a big sharp knife to make about 20 little baggies of potpourri for co-workers. I sometimes add star anise but forgot this time – too bad, it does add a nice scent! I also put in crystallized ginger.

All of these recipes sound absolutely wonderful and I am definitely looking forward to potentially trying one out! Probably the lemon one, as I love the smell of lemon and simmering it with cinnamon would just be heavenly. I was just wondering, as an extreme newbie to potpurri (I’ve never made it in my life), after you simmer it on the stovetop do you just pour it into a bowl and display it that way? Or is it just to freshen up the kitchen? I just bought a small clay bowl for my room and was thinking about making potpurri as a natural fragrance to keep it fresh :)

Great question! Once you’re done simmering it, you just discard it. It is mostly to freshen up the kitchen. I recommend dried potpourri for your clay dish. I imagine you’d need to infuse it with essential oils to get it to have a potent enough fragrance. Best of luck sorting it out! <3

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